In reference to issue t-mag issue # 157 Article “Body Type and training strategy” How do you know if your limb is considered long or short? Are there specific formulas or ratios in comparison to height and other limbs which people can base their answer to? My upper body is obvious with short trunk and long arms, but I don’t know how to categorize my upper and lower legs. Thanks PK
I actually asked my mom about this. I figure she’d know something about it. Anyway, she has long femurs and trunk like I do. She found out by taking a fashion class at night school for fun. Maybe a tailor could help you with the normal measurements.
To pkradgreek. If your thighs are longer than your tibias (shins), you’ll have a hard time doing full squats. This gets exagerated if you have a small spine. Just do a split squat beside a mirror. You should be able to tell if you have long thighs relative to your shin. The formula I like to use is:
1)Thigh length: measure from the patella to the sacrum (bottom of butt). Use this as a reference point.
2)Tibia length (shin): measure from the patella to the bottom of heel.
3)Spine: From T2 to sacrum.
4)Arm: Acromion to the elbow
5)Forearm: Elbow to middle of palm.
My ratios are respectively: 65,55,62,33,37 (cm). Any kinisieoligist should be able to decipher these numbers and tell me what I can or can not do. Hope this helps.